Newburyport, MA (January 29, 2024)—NetGalley, LLC—the industry-standard digital galley and marketing platform, and a strategic part of the Firebrand Group collection of companies owned by Media Do International (MD-i)—announced today a major upgrade to its Reading Options, which includes the launch of the new proprietary NetGalley Reader and introduces LCP-protected downloads to the NetGalley platform. The global upgrade is now live across all NetGalley domains in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Japan.
The new NetGalley Reader, built by NetGalley’s in-house engineering team, offers industry-best digital content protection on the web. Utilizing a proprietary digital content protection system designed by seasoned DRM researchers at NetGalley, it combines sophisticated cryptography techniques to lock digital content to specific users and devices, with a front-end UI layer to restrict attackers’ abilities to lift decrypted content from the browser.
Providing a quick and secure reading experience in web browsers with a single click, the NetGalley Reader is the fastest possible way for NetGalley members to start reading their approved books—with no need to leave the NetGalley website, download any files, or use an external device. At launch, the NetGalley Reader supports ePub- and PDF-formatted ebooks. Members will continue to use the free NetGalley Shelf app (iOS and Android) as the exclusive way to listen to audiobooks.
As part of ongoing security efforts, NetGalley has also made adjustments to the “Download” Reading Option, replacing the older Adobe DRM with EDRLab’s Readium Licensed Content Protection (LCP). NetGalley files have been protected with LCP in the NetGalley Shelf app since it was launched in 2020, but with this upgrade, NetGalley members can now download and read files on any LCP-supported device or app.
“We’re committed to making books easily and securely accessible to NetGalley members, however they like to read,” said Firebrand Technologies and NetGalley, LLC Chief Technology Officer Tom Shawver. “This major upgrade expands our Reading Options to allow for a seamless in-browser reading experience, while also strengthening our partnership with EDRLab to offer portable, Readium LCP-protected downloads. We’re thrilled to pull from our extensive experience to create a simple and convenient reading platform for our community, and a first-of-its-kind content protection solution for our publishers.”
For more information about NetGalley, please contact concierge@netgalley.com.
About NetGalley, LLC
NetGalley helps publishers and authors promote digital review copies and audiobooks to book advocates and industry professionals. Hundreds of thousands of members rely on NetGalley’s secure, sustainable, and easy-to-use platform to discover books, share reviews, and champion literacy. The NetGalley team coordinates closely with publishers on targeted promotions, and provides training, strategy, and consultation for incorporating NetGalley into overall marketing and publicity efforts. NetGalley is a strategic part of the Firebrand Group collection of companies owned by Media Do International (MD-i) which together provide leading software and services to help publishers succeed. To learn more, visit netgalley.com/tour.
About Media Do International (MD-i)
Media Do International (MD-i) owns the Firebrand Group, a collection of companies including Firebrand Technologies, NetGalley, LLC, and Supadu Ltd. that provide leading software and services to help publishers succeed. MD-i is itself the US-based subsidiary of Japan’s Media Do Co. Ltd, one of the largest ebook distribution companies in the world retaining the largest share of Japan’s ebook market. Media Do Co. Ltd.’s mission is to make more content available for more people. To learn more, visit mediado.jp/english.
